Tours of India

Get beyond the tourist façade of the countries you visit. Focus on the local culture, past and present, and discover the lifeblood of any country – its people. Discovery and culture tours uncover different ways of life, and offer the opportunity to meet and sometimes stay with local people or tribal groups. Our discovery tours explore cultural sites – both ancient and modern – and help you learn about the people and their culture. Visit the remote tribes of Ethiopia’s Rift Valley, live the nomad life in desert camps or meet the local people of the high Andean altiplano in Peru. There’s no better way to get to the true heart of a country than through its people.

Inside the Hidden Kingdoms

Tour Map of Inside the Hidden Kingdoms

Travel with us on this cultural adventure from the vast Ganges Delta of Bangladesh, through the tea plantations of Darjeeling and into the Buddhist Kingdom of Bhutan. Along the way we explore relics of the Raj, ruined monasteries and ancient temples. These awe-inspiring religious sites are set against the dramatic backdrop of the Himalayan Mountains.

On all Explore tours we take you under the skin of the country you’re visiting and introduce you to real, authentic local life. But on some tours we make this the main focus of the trip: fully immersing ourselves into local life and experiencing how the local people live. These tours are designed to take every opportunity to discover traditional life and rub shoulders with local people. We visit local communities, sometimes eating with them or even staying overnight with them. We may travel by local transport and visit local markets, festivals or local projects. We also hope to experience local culture and witness music, dance and other traditions. To experience first-hand the way of life enjoyed by other cultures around the world, interacting with local people who have little contact with the world of tourism, can be immensely inspiring and enriching – not just for us but also for the host communities.

Highlights of Assam and Nagaland

Tour Map of Highlights of Assam and Nagaland

This adventurous tour sees us heading right off the beaten track and exploring India's north-eastern states of Assam and Nagaland. After a brief stop in Guwahati we explore the tribal Khasi villages of Cherrapunjee and test out their ingenious living tree bridges. We spend time in Kaziranga National Park searching for rhino before moving on to Majuli Island, one of the world's largest river islands. Whilst in Nagaland we explore Ao Naga and Regma tribal villages as well as visiting Longwa, where half of the village is in India and the rest in Burma.

The Edge of India

This trip allows you to experience some of the traditional ways of life of the peoples of the tribal states of north east India. We start this trip in Meghalaya where we will hike down from Cherrapunjee, the wettest place on earth, to the lush jungles on the border of Bangladesh. There we will witness the incredible living bridges of the Khasi people. Then we will take a road trip through the jungles of Arunachal Pradesh and up into the peaks of the Himalayas and the Tawang Valley. We visit the largest Tibetan Buddhist complex outside of Lhasa and experience life in a remote Buddhist convent. To really get a feel of tribal life we will stay at a small Adi village and join some Adi friends of ours on a traditional trip into the jungle. We will see first hand how the jungle is the builder centre and larder for the villagers with rope, poison, baskets, food, entertainment and lodging all available if you just know where and how to look. Finally, we’ll cross the mighty Brahmaputra by ferry before staying a night in a colonial era tea plantation.

Tribes and Temples of Orissa

Tour Map of Tribes and Temples of Orissa

Visiting Orissa is like taking a trip through time, from the 'first people' tribes, to the temples and monasteries of the Buddhist and Hindu eras, to the time of the Raj. We'll meet the tribal people at the Adivasi Tribal Fair, and mix with them in colourful markets and remote villages. We'll explore temples at Bhubaneshwar and Puri - one of the four most holy pilgrimage sites for Hindus, see the holy men of Joranda, and stay in the Maharajah's Palace at Dhenkanal.